MIlan to start William Tell Express to Lucerne

I posted previously about how to travel on the William Tell Express 2nd class with the Swiss Travel Pass and your assistance was greatly appreciated. However, I am again not sure what to do. It looks like we need to go from Milan to Locarno the morning of August 20. There is a train that gets there around 11:00 a.m. I can't figure out what time the William Tell Express leaves from there and if arriving at 11 will give enough time.

Also, if for some reason we miss the connection, I understand there are other trains that follow the same route that leave hourly from Locarno--is that correct? Could we still get on the boat to Lucerne on one of those trains?

One more question, how much time does one need to allow at train stations to catch connections? I see where the layover may be anywhere from 5 to 60 minutes or more.

Thanks so much.

Hi lward,

If you depart from Milan you can take a train to Bellinzona and pick up the Wilhelm Tell Express from there, unless you want to see Locarno of course.

There's a link to a specific Wilhelm Tell Express timetable on our page about that train, a link to the boat timetable on our Lake Lucerne page. All trains, boats, buses etc. are in the Swiss timetable. From those sources you can work out the schedule for your day trip: take the 8:25 EuroCity train from Milan which arrives in Bellinzona at 9:58. This train requires seat reservations. You can book tickets here. Then change to the 12:06 Wilhelm Tell Express. There are later connections from Milan but not direct ones and they only arrive 10 minutes before the Wilhelm Tell Express leaves. That's plenty of time, but not in case of a delay. Basically any change suggested by the timetable is doable under normal circumstances, regardless if it's 3 or 60 minutes.

If you miss a connection in Switzerland you simply take the next train or boat (see the timetable). If you buy the Wilhelm Tell Express package you will have reserved seats, so if you miss that one you also miss out on your seats. You can still take another train but it would be a waste of money.

I hope this further clarifies things!

I went to look at the price of tickets for four from Milan to Bellinzona, Switzerland the morning of August 20. On the raileurope.com (US) site the tickets are $88/each-(just went to $268 each for some reason.) On the raileurope-world site they are 116 euro for four. When I go to convert the cost to dollar on the site, the US dollar is not a choice. What is the difference in the two sites and can I purchase from the raileurope-world site? I will also be purchasing 4 Swiss Travel Passes and they are also cheaper on the raileurope-world site. Thanks for your help.

I can book on the RailEurope-US site from Milan to Locarno that has a layover in Bellinzona for $44/each. Can we book that and just stay in Bellinzona? It is much cheaper than booking direct to Bellinzona for some reason. Thanks again.

Hi lward,

You have a Swiss Travel Pass so there is no need to pay for tickets for the Swiss leg of Milan - Bellinzona. The prices you quote seem for full price tickets, perhaps even 1st class. There are two sites where you can book this from the US:

• www.raileurope.com/ european-trains/trenitalia/how-to-book.html: select Swiss Travel Pass under "Are you traveling with a rail pass?", and select 2nd class. The tickets are $ 22 per person.
• www.raileurope-world.com#tab3: make the same selections and you will get tickets for € 14 per person which is a bit cheaper than the other site.

Did this work for you?

Just went to both sites--RailEurope for 4 adults with a 2nd class Swiss Travel Pass from Milan to Bellinzona it gives the fare of $88/person. If I put in Milan to Locarno, it is $34/each with a 30 minute layover in Bellinzona. Can we just get off the train there?

On RailEurope-World, I put in 4 adults with a 2nd class Swiss Travel Pass from Milan to Bellinzona and it tells me there are no schedules to display. It also said the same thing to Locarno.

Really appreciate your help

Hi lward,

If you enter 4 adults it will show you the total price for 4 adults (or at least when you click the View button under the price), so it matches with what I quoted in my previous post. Rail Europe World works fine for me too. Be careful to fill out the correct station names. A simple mistake (like entering Bellinzago instead of Bellinzona) is enough to get no schedules or the wrong one.

You can buy tickets to Locarno and get off the train in Bellinzona, but those tickets are more expensive.

Please let me know if this worked out now!